My first language kits

Children's picture books and more in 25 languages. These kits provide parents and caregivers with materials and information to support home language development and cultural identity in the early years.

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Each kit contains:

• picture books
• a translated parent resource guide
• music CDs or VCDs and informational DVDs if available

Languages:

• Albanian
• Arabic
• Chinese: simplified with Mandarin CDs;  traditional with Mandarin CDs; traditional with Cantonese CDs
• Croatian
• Farsi
• Filipino
• French
• Gujarati 
• Hindi
• Hungarian
• Italian
• Japanese
• Korean
• Kurdish
• Polish
• Portuguese
• Punjabi
• Romanian
• Russian
• Serbian
• Somali
• Spanish
• Tamil
• Urdu
• Vietnamese

How to borrow

• My First Language Kits are loaned free-of-charge to anyone with a Burnaby Public Library card
• kits may be borrowed for 28 days
• language selection varies by branch

Background information

This family literacy initiative is designed primarily to reach new immigrant families with young children. In addition, the My First Language Kits are a valuable resource for more established families interested in maintaining first language use at home. Your First Language: a Precious Gift to Your Child, a one-page handout specially developed and translated for this project, in included in each resource guide. It is based on two solid research bases:

• early learning is critical to later success in reading
• a strong foundation in a child’s home language enhances second language development, family bonds and personal well-being

Key outcomes of this initiative include:

• support for home language development and cultural identity in the early years
• enhanced community capacity for service providers and parent mentors
• stronger partnerships between the public library and organizations providing services to newcomer families
• greater capacity for Burnaby Public Library to deliver culturally appropriate service

Burnaby Public Library gratefully acknowledges the financial assistance of the Ministry of Children and Family Development, Province of British Columbia, in developing the My First Language Kits.